This article is about a year and a half old, but it definitely shows that they don't make near $74 an hour (unless benefits are included)
Quote:
In Detroit, where generations of families have made solid, middle-class livings working on the line, autoworkers worry about what they're giving up when they agree to walk away from jobs. They earn about $57,000 on average for jobs requiring little more than a high school education and a clean criminal record. They get health benefits unmatched by any other industry, paying next to nothing for medical bills. Unionized workers get paid even if they're not working.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/200 ... ages_x.htm
I'm not a math whiz, but at 40 hours a week, that equals out to more like $27.00 an hour.
I definitely agree with Rooster's take on this. The media (who is own by big business) makes its job demonizing unions and union workers. Seriously, who here thinks $57K is living high off the hog? Its certainly not. And considering how much of that $76 would have to be going to medical care, its quite ridiculous. It shows both that we are paying and are being completely exploited by the insurance industry, and that middle class jobs are so scarce, its not even laughable anymore.
If you read the article I posted, there is a comment about being able to be an autoworker with little more than a high school diploma and a clean criminal record. I say, so what? Not everyone has to be a college graduate and god knows that doesn't even promise a job in this country any more (I am living proof of that).